Pneumatic action for automatic playing mechanism.



E. SWANSON.

PNEUMATIG ACTION FOB AUTOMATIC PLAYING MBGHANISM.

APPLIOATIOH FILED JAN. s, 1913.

1,065,634, Patented June 24, 1913.

du k. @um y Mw @l Uurrn srafrns assur oriic- EMIL SWANSON, OF STEER,ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR T0 STEGER c SONS PIANO MANU- FACTURIN G COMPANY, 0FSTEGER, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

PNEUMATIC ACTION FOR AUTOMATIC PLAYING. MECHANISI.

Specification of Letters Patent.

T0 all 'whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, EMIL SwANsoN, a citizen of the United' States,residing at Steger, in the county of 7 ill and State of Illinois, haveinvented new' and useful Improvements in Pneumatic Actions for AutomaticPlay# ing Mechanism,"of which the following is a specification,reference being had to 4the accompanying drawings, .forming a partthereof.

The purpose of this invent-ion is to provideI an improved vconstructionof the pneumatic action of an automatic playing mechanism or keyedinstrument` It consists in theelemen'ts and features of constructionshown and described, as indicated in the claims. y

.Inthe drawings: Figure 1 is a vertical fore-andaft'section of apneumatic action embodying this invention, the same beingv shown inconnection with the hammer action of a piano. Fig.- 2 is a detailsection of one power unit of the pneumatic .action on a larger scalethan Fig. 1. Fig. 8 is a detail on a' large scale of the primarypneumatic valve. Y

The drawings represent the tracker, 1, in its usual relation to themusic roll, 2, and take-up roll, 3, which are indicated by outline only.From the tracker the air "ducts in the form of tiexible tubes, 4, extendto the primary pnenmatics, 5, of the usual diaphragm type which operatevalves, (3,7, controlling the fiushing tubes, S, leading to thesecondary pneumatics, 9, which in turn operate the Valves, 10,v forcontrolling the lcommunication ofthe power pneumatics, 11, alternatelywith the exhaust chamber, 1Q, and with the outer atmosphere through thepassage, 32, and inlet port, 14. Each power pneumatic is connected by arod, 15, with thelever, 1G, which act-s up'on the piano hammer actionthrough the medium of 1the lever, 17, connected with the abstract, 18,for actuating th'cwippen, 19; said lever, 17,

' being the customary lower abstract link extended forwardly from itsconnection with the abstract to afford the lever arm upon which thelever, 1G, operates. In this construction thc following detail featuresare to be noted as characteristic of the structure: The primarypneumatic valves, (3,--7, are both screwed into a stem, 6a, which is inthe I form of a screw-eye,-that is, having ahead,

a, in the form of an eye, rendering it cheap in construction andfacilitating manipulasmooth round head for bearing upon the diaphragmpneumatic, A5.' The entire valve structure is made; u by screwing vontothe threaded stem, 6, ist the lower valve, 7, which has a leatherseating face, 7", followed by: the spacing collar, 7, which has a flatend for bearing againstthe leather face of the valve, 7. Thisis followedby a second spacing collar, 7, similarly provided with a flat end forbearing against-the leather face, 6", of the upper valve, 6. beingthreaded over its ent-ire length, renders ,it possible to adjust 'thevalves, 6 and 7, with respectcto each other and with respect to thehead, 7a, so that they; shall be not only correctly spaced apart for theproper throw from one seat to the other, but also both properly spacedfrom `the diaphragm pneumatic, 5, upon which the head 7a, rests. Thespacing collars, 7, being first positioned on the stem to properly spacethe valvesyeach valve being then screwed up tightly against its spacingcollar, the stem may be screwed in either 4direction to properly spacethe vhead from the lower valve, 7.

It will be understood that'the primary pneumatics are mounted as usualin a plurality of bars, 20, 20, each channeled to form an exhaustchamber, 21,.tliese exhaust chambers being connected .at the ends Abyair trunks, not shown, with any suitable exhaust apparatus, notsliown,and that the cover board, 22, of the exhaustchamber,

Y' Patented J une 24, 1913.. Application filed January 8, 19H3. SerialNo. 740,768. v

The stem, (5,1

say

21, has a separate air port, 23, leading through it into the exhaustchamber, 21, op-

Aposite each primary pneumatic, the outer ends of said ports being incommunication with the atmosphere through a channel, 24, formed in 'acover plate, which extends over 'the entire group of pneumatics and thatthe vflushing tubes, S, lead in through p thel cover board, 22, to theports, 23, respectively. Y

Each power pneumatic, 11, with its controlling valve, 10, and secondarypneumatic, 9, is made as a complete unit adapted to be mountedseparately and independently from each other unit on the exhaustchainber. 1Q, this construction being distinguished from the morefa'niiliar construction in which the secondary pneumatics are formedirna manner similar to the lformation of the primary pneumatic abovedescribed, that is,

allhaving one side exposed in an exhaust chamber common to the entirerow or series.'

In order to employ the construction of the independent power pneumaticunits above described, the following construction is adopted. Each powerpneumatic, l1, comprises a block, 25, upon whose lower side the movingmember, 11, of the power pneumaticis connected by the bellows -memberwhose chamber has communication through a port, 26, with the secondarypneumatic chamber, 27, which is cut in the top of the block, 25, andcovered by a block,'28, in

the upper sidefof which iS formed the valve chamber, 29, from whicharport, 30, leads into the secondary pneumatic chamber, 27, A coverplate, 30, above the block, 28, closes the valve chamber, except as tothe air inlet port, 14, directly above the valve whose upperseat is themargin of said aperture'on the under side of the cover plate. A channel,32, leads from the chamber, 27, above the dia hragm pneumatic, 9, to theinner end of t e block, 25,-that is, the end which is to be mounted onthe vertical face of the exhaust chamber, 12, and from below thepneumatic, 9, a duct, 33, leads to the same end of the block-#and therear `wall of theexhaust chamber has ports, 12, and 12b, for registeringwith the end of said chan-- nel, 32, and the end of the duct, 33 whenthe block is mountedl on t-he exhaust ehamber. It will be understoodthat the two blocks,

' 25 and 28 are permanently secured together after the pneumatic diaphrahas been properly mounted in the block, 25, so the two constitute aunitary structure.v This .unitary struct-ure is secured with its forwardend against the rear face of the exhaust chamber, 12, chiefly by meansof an axially hollow screw, 40, which is set through the rear wall ofthe exhaust chamber, (the forward'wall being removable and being put dnplace after the power pneumatic units are al1-secured). This hollowscrew takes into the end of the block, 25, being screwed into the duct,12", in said block which leads to the under side of the secondary pneu-Xmat-ic. The axial duc-lI in the screw does not lead through the end ofthe head, but having extended into the head leads out at the wall of theexhaust chamberand the yield-L screw, 47, preferably set through theupper side of the block, 28, obliquely into the rear wallof theexhaustchamber, 12. Inview of the fact that the hole bored for thescrew, 40, is liable to so nearly penetrate the under surface of theblock, 25, that there might be air leakgge through the thin layer ofwood remaining, it is. preferable to reinforce the block at this pointby 'a thin disk, 50, of any convenient impervious material.

In lorder that the stroke of the power pneumatics may be controlled withexactness so that there shall be no lost motion between the movingmember of the power pneumatic and the connections with the wippen, andto make it possible to adjust the connections from eac connection onwhich it operates, according to the necessities ofl each case as theymay slightly vary, there is'provided an adjustable stop, 60, for theforward end of the lever 16, this stop being preferably made by means ofa screw-eye, 61, set through a bar, 62, mounted on the forward side ofthe exhaust chamber, 12, at the lower edge, said screw-eye having on itslower end afelt-covered stop button, 63, which receives .the contact ofthe fo'rward end of the lever, 64, noiselessly. This stop, it willbeseen, limits the recoil or expanding stroke of the power pneumatic.For limiting its stroke in the opposite direction, there is mounted uponthe orward side of the abstract guide, 65, a bar, 66, in which there areset overhanging the lever, 17, of each wippen connection, a screw-eye,67, precisely similar to the screw-eye, 61, similarly provided with afelt covered button at the lower end for noiseless Contact withtheleyer, 17, in the collapsing stroke of the motor pneumatic.

A guide for the stem Vof the valve of the secondary pneumatic valve, 10,may be vided in `the form of a bar, 36, mounte by securing it on one endof the upper side of,

the block, 25, adjacent to the channel, 32,

Vand"extending thence overhanging the diapower pneumatic to the wippenphra'gm pneumatic, 9.

I claim:

1, The combination with the hammer action of a piano, a pneumatic act'for an automatic playing mechanism, comprising a vertically-extendingexhaust chamber, power pneumatics mounted on and` extend-` ing 'from therear wall of said-chamber one for each of the hammers to be operatedhavwall of said chamber and arranged for c01- ing their moving wallsarran ed for collapsing upwardly; a lever for each motor lapsing upwardand expan ing downpneumatic havin its fulcrum supported 25 wardly; alever for each power neumatic on .the exhaust cig mber at the lower sidefulcrumed between its ends and aving its thereof and a rod connecting itwith the fulcrum supported by the exhaust chamber moving wall of thepower pneumatic for underneath the same; a manually operable upwardmovement of its rear end upon the stop adjustable for limiting theupward collapse of the pneumatic; a manually op- 30 movement of. 'theforward end of each of erable adjustable stop for the opposite movesaidlevers mounted upon the exhaust chamment of the lever mounted upon theexber and overhanging said end; a support haust chamber; a support fixedwith refixed with respect to the hammer action and spect to the hammeraction; a manually opa manually operable adjustable stop mounterableadjustable stop on said support for I6 ed on said support overhangin therear end limiting the hammer actuating stroke of the of the lever forlimiting te collapsing leyer upon the collapse of the pneumatic. strokeof the pneumatic. In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set 2. Incombination with the hammer acmy hand at Steger, Illinois, this 7th dayof tion of a piano, a pneumatic action for an December, 1912.

automatic playing mechanism, comprising EMIL SWANSON. avertically-extending exhaust chamber, Witnesses: horizontally-extendingpower pneumatics n H. C. WEHLAN,

mounted upon and protruding from the rear J. N. GANSEN, J r.

